The Highlands Bluebirds (11-2 overall) found themselves in a challenge to play their fast-paced brand of volleyball and not down to the level of the opponent, even in the rivalry game.

Highlands senior setter Audrey Graves said the team was fired up before the game. But once the game started, the seniors made sure everyone stayed on an even keel. That propelled the Bluebirds to a sound 3-0 (25-15, 25-19, 25-15) 36th District victory. NewCath (2-5) has lost five straight.

"It's always going to be an exciting game. On the court, (it was) about looking to each and being like, 'Hey, take a deep breath. We're good. Get this pass' really grounded everybody so that they could do the jobs that we needed to do," Graves said. "We do that anyway. Whether it's hand hugs or anything like is really helpful to keep your mind right."

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

The Highlands Bluebirds will be playing in the championship game of the Lexington Catholic Lady Knights Challenge Cup.

Highlands (7-0-4 overall) defeated the host Lady Knights (8-2-1), 7-6 on penalty kicks in the semifinals of the winner's bracket to advance to the title game for the first time since 2016. Highlands will play Saturday at 7 p.m. for the title against either Sacred Heart, Notre Dame or Lexington Tates Creek.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team will end up playing three times in three days.

Highlands (6-0-4 overall) shut out the Beechwood Lady Tigers, 4-0 on Tuesday at Tower Park. The Bluebirds moved to 4-0-1 in 9th Region play.

"They've been trending upwards in terms of their skill," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "They definitely have a good amount of skill and they definitely play with effort. (Beechwood Head Coach Josh Young) is in his first year, but he definitely did a good job making sure that his girls played hard."

It may look as though the Covington Catholic Colonel boys soccer team is struggling based on the 3-6 record.

But the Highlands Bluebirds (7-2-2) did not fall for that deceptive record making a first-half goal stand in a 1-0 victory on the road. The Colonels have lost to the likes of Lexington Henry Clay, Cincinnati (Ohio) Country Day, Dayton (Ohio) Carroll, Columbus (Ohio) St. Francis de Sales and Cincinnati (Ohio) Archbishop McNicholas.

Highlands has won four straight in the series against the Colonels including a 2-1 win in the 9th Region championship in Park Hills last year. Highlands is 4-0-1 in region play.

"We've realized in these games we're going to grind it out," said Chad Niedert, Highlands Head Coach. "When we're the better team, it's a 50/50 game. When we're the lesser team, it's a 50/50 game. It really doesn't matter what kind of record you got."

Highlands had 16 shots to 10 for the Colonels with three on goal to six for CovCath. Highlands senior goalkeeper Nick Fischer had three saves.

The lone goal came 13 minutes into the game. Junior Max Farris dribbled into the box and fired off a shot. Senior Caymon Stevie put the deflection home for the score.

"When you have the team chemistry that Highland has, it takes a couple passes and maybe a couple dribbles though people," Farris said. "It just all worked out."

Highlands had to overcome some free kicks in the second half not far from the goal. But the Bluebirds cleared every one of them. Neither team had a red card. But the Colonels did receive two yellow cards.

"Our midfield plays a lot of defense and a lot of offense," said Porter Hedenberg, Highlands senior. "You have to do both jobs, which is nice. We all three work together really well and we have good chemistry with our six on defense and our six on offense."

Highlands plays host to Covington Holmes (1-5) on Thursday. Game time is 7:30 p.m.Soccer, Girls:Highlands 4, Louisville DuPont Manual 2:
Highlands (5-0-4 overall) overcame a 2-1 halftime deficit against the Lady Crimsons (4-3-1) to win the first game at the annual Lexington Catholic Lady Knights Challenge Cup. Highlands takes on the hosts in the next round Wednesday at 8 p.m.

"In the first half, we didn't start slow, but we didn't have the start that we wanted," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "We were a little fatigued and we kind of told the girls you don't have to go out and play 80 minutes. Just go out and give us five or 10 minutes of good effort. We were down at halftime. We had a talk at halftime. We can play with any team in Kentucky, but we have to act like it. We just can't think that we can walk out there and get a win. That was a good thing being able to overcome a halftime deficit."
Sophomores Faith Broering and Jade Rehberger had one goal and one assist each in the game for three points. Senior Kelsey Mathis and sophomore Macy Hedenberg had one goal each with sophomore Chloe Bramble tallying two assists. Bramble has a team-high seven goals to go with five assists for a team-high 19 points.

"The upperclassmen definitely encourage us," Macy Hedenberg said. "If we do something wrong, they're all so positive and encouraging and we're all best friends."

Highlands takes on Beechwood on Tuesday at Tower Park. Game time is 7:30 p.m.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team (6-2-2 overall) hoped to finish the week with three nice wins.

The Bluebirds earned a man advantage in the second half of the game against the Lexington Henry Clay Blue Devils, a state semifinalist last season, after the Blue Devils earned a red card. But Highlands could not capitalize and the teams settled for a 1-1 tie. Henry Clay came into the game ranked third in the state in the Maher rankings.

Twitter Photo. The Highlands Boys Golf team won the Bourbon County Invitational on Sunday.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys golf team won its first tournament of the season Sunday.

Highlands won the Bourbon County Invitational shooting a 321 team total on the Par-72 course. Junior Justin Gabbard led the way shooting a 74 and placing third individually. Gabbard won medalist honors at the Shelby County Invitational and the Beechwood Invitational earlier in the season.

It came down to one last burst playing as much volleyball as the Highlands Bluebirds (10-1 overall) did over a three-day period.

Highlands found itself back in the championship game of the September Slam hosted by Scott after capping off pool play with two wins Saturday morning. The last opponent of the three-day stretch proved to be solid.

The Southwestern Lady Warriors located about two and a half hours away just outside the Pulaski County county seat of Somerset near Lake Cumberland came into the game with a sparkling 10-2 record. Southwestern's only losses came to host Lexington Lafayette and Station Camp (from the Nashville, Tennessee suburb of Gallatin) in the Bluegrass Invitational a little more than a week ago.

Southwestern has won the 12th Region a number of times over the years including last year. The Lady Warriors beat Paintsville in the state tournament before losing to Campbell County in the state quarterfinals. But Highland had beaten the Lady Warriors in each of the past two September Slam Tournaments.

The Lady Warriors came out the aggressors in the first game building a 10-1 lead. But once sophomore CC Shick landed a hard kill, the vaunted, fast-paced Highlands attack took off. Highlands rallied to win the best-of-three set, 26-24 then 24-19 to win its first September Slam title since 2008 when current Highlands assistant coach Molly Wehage-Maxwell was a senior.

Saturday, September 7, 2019

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands Student Section known as the OZone had a Country theme in the game against Campbell County.

With the game out of hand in the second half in the first shut-out for the Highlands Bluebirds football team in two seasons, some players saw their first Friday Night action.

Sophomore wide receiver Jacob Welch made the most impressive debut with three touchdowns on four touches for the Bluebirds. Welch had two rushes for 22 yards and a touchdown and two catches for 38 yards and two touchdowns. Sophomore offensive lineman Nate Weidner took over at center in the fourth quarter.

"I was excited to get out there and play," Weidner said. "You just have to get out there, know your plays well and get after it."
The last shut-out for the Bluebirds came on Oct. 6, 2017 by a 47-0 score over Dixie Heights in Fort Thomas. The closest Highlands came to that last season was a 40-3 win at Ryle on Sept. 7.OZone Goes Country:
The Highlands student section known as the O-Zone has a theme for most of the football games. Against Campbell County, it was a Country theme and it was a white-out against Scott to open the season. One senior who took part in the country them was Caraline Walsh. Walsh is a member of the Chamber Choir and the National English Honors Society.

"There's nothing better," Walsh said. "Every year when we play Campbell County, this is the go-to theme. I feel like it represents our school. I'm glad to show our pride."Honoring Lorenzen:
Highlands senior quarterback Collin Hollingsworth wore number 22 instead of the usual 10 in honor of the late Highlands and University of Kentucky great quarterback Jared Lorenzen. Highlands painted the 22-yard lines blue in Lorenzen's honor before the season.

Around Class 5A, District 5:
The Bluebirds watched part of the fourth quarter of the Covington Catholic-Lexington Catholic game on the big screen in the locker room.

Covington Catholic trailed 38-24 in the fourth quarter, but came back to beat the Knights, 39-38 and stay undefeated at 3-0. Junior quarterback Caleb Jacob snuck it in from a yard out and senior running back Daniel Felix ran over the right side for the two-point conversion to give the Colonels for the first time in the game.

CovCath held on with a fourth-down stop at its 46. On 4th-and-1, LexCath quarterback Beau Allen lined up under center with five wide receivers. He tried the quarterback sneak, but the Colonel defense snuffed it out with around 1:32 left in the game.

Allen, a University of Kentucky commit, competed 23-of-32 passes for 448 yards and five touchdowns. Jacob threw for 247 yards and a touchdown. Senior tight end Michael Mayer had six catches for 71 yards for the Colonels.

The Colonels play host to Dixie Heights on Friday at 7 p.m.

Conner moved to 2-1 with a 35-0 win at Dixie Heights. The Cougars play host to Lloyd Memorial (2-1) on Sept. 14 at 7 p.m.

Cooper and Boone County both lost for the first time this season falling to 2-1. The Jaguars lost 20-16 in the battle of Union against Ryle at home on Friday and Lloyd Memorial beat Boone County, 22-14 in Erlanger.

Next Opponent for Highlands:

The Bluebirds travel to Independence to face the Simon Kenton Pioneers on Friday at 7 p.m. in a battle of 2-1 teams. The Pioneers opened the season with a 38-27 win over Lexington Henry Clay before facing two Ohio opponents.

Simon Kenton lost to Cincinnati Anderson, 44-16. But the Pioneers bounced back to beat the Cincinnati Oak Hills Highlanders.

Volleyball:Highlands Wins Two at September Slam:
The Bluebirds moved to 7-1 on the season with two wins in the September Slam on Friday at Woodland Middle School. Highlands bested Covington Holy Cross, 2-0 (25-15, 25-16) before taking out South Laurel from the 13th Region, 2-0 (25-9, 25-17).

"Our focus has been not only to maintain our composure, but our level of play," said Katelyn Sallee, Highlands Head Coach. "We want to control the tempo of the match regardless of who we're facing. This weekend is going to be a really big test to have five matches back-to-back-to-back. You have to stay disciplined. You have to stay on it and they did that."
In the victory over Holy Cross, Highlands had six aces, 16 kills, one block, 15 assists and 52 digs. Senior outside hitter Casey Dunn led the way with two kills, three aces and 14 digs. Senior setter Audrey Graves had 15 assists, one ace and seven digs. Sophomore middle blocker CC Shick had seven kills and assisted on a block.

Highlands junior Laura Winkler and sophomore Lauren Buemi had three kills each. Buemi also had two assisted blocks. Senior Ava Hockney had the team's lone solo block to go with an ace.

The senior defensive specialists also came up big. Senior Rylee Kirschenbaum had 12 digs and an ace with Brooke Biltz adding nine digs.

Against South Laurel, Dunn had seven kills, one assisted block and 10 digs. Graves had 18 assists, three digs, three kills and two aces and Hockney had three kills and two assisted blocks. Shick recorded four kills, one solo and one assisted block.

Winkler played some setter and had six assists and two digs. She also had two kills. Kirschenbaum had a team-high 11 digs. Buemi, Hockney and sophomore Nicole Ossege added three kills each.

"In a game of three, I feel like, 'Let's just get this over. Let's do what we can do," Ossege said. "We have to play to our level and not down to anyone else's level. We always focus on team and then we're very fast with whatever we do so I always feel that we need to maintain that speed and just try to run more things when we have the opportunity with the less-advanced teams."
Highlands continues pool play Saturday morning at Scott. The Bluebirds take on Calvary Christian (6-6) at 9 a.m. on court one and Conner (2-6) on court two at 10 a.m.

Reitz Memorial (4-0-1) came into the game as the 16th-ranked team in the country in the Top Drawer Soccer Fab 50 poll. Reitz owns four state championships in school history.

"I felt that we played one of the best teams that we'll see this regular season. Going into the game, we kind of looked at what they've done so far this year," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "We knew it was going to be tough. We wanted to make sure that we played well. If we could get a win, great. A tie is great. A one-goal loss where we're playing hard is a win for us. We were fighting hard. We gave up a goal pretty early. We made sure we didn't give up another one. Then, we had an outside back step up and hit one from about 18 (feet) out to tie the game then we kind of made sure we didn't lose the game after that. After the game. we were pretty excited. The other team was kind of upset. That was a good feeling even though it was just a tie."
Highlands senior midfielder Kelsey Mathis tied the game in the second half. That marked her first goal of the season.

"I think this team is really strong all-around and I think everyone contributes what they can," Mathis said. "I'm glad I could help the team. I think we played well considering we left school early, had to ride up a few hours and shortly warm up."
Both teams had 18 shots. Reitz had 14 on goal and Highlands had nine. Highlands junior goalkeeper Jasmine Rehberger had 13 saves.

Highlands plays Carmel (Indiana) at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday to conclude the tournament.

Thursday, September 5, 2019

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands Student Section known as the O-Zone is shown here at a soccer game. The O-Zone helped the Highlands volleyball team to a victory Thursday over Dixie Heights.

The Highlands Bluebirds volleyball team had this game marked on the schedule for a big reason.

The Dixie Heights Lady Colonels (4-2 overall) beat the Bluebirds (5-1) three out of four meetings last year including the 9th Region Quarterfinals, 3-0. But Highlands won the battle of top-five 9th Region teams, 3-0 (25-20, 25-17, 25-17) in Fort Thomas to move to 2-0 in region play.

Wednesday, September 4, 2019

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior Audrey Graves sets up on a serve in the game at Walton-Verona on Tuesday. Graves had 53 assists and an ace in the victory.

The Highlands Bluebirds volleyball team (4-1 overall) may have received the tough game needed before a huge game Thursday.

Highlands held off the Walton-Verona Bearcats (5-3) by a 3-2 count (25-18, 18-25, 25-18, 23-25, 15-7) for a third straight win. But Highlands missed the opportunity to end it in four games and wants to do better finishing those opportunities.

Friday, August 30, 2019

The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team has hit a rough patch.
But the good news is Highlands (4-2-1 overall) did salvage a scoreless tie against the improved Conner Cougars on Thursday at Tower Park. Conner is 5-1-1.

Conner made waves in the 33rd District Tournament last year with a 2-1 win over the Ryle Raiders in the semifinals. The Cougars finished 13-7 losing 2-1 in double overtime to Dixie Heights in the 9th Region quarterfinals.

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Twitter Photo. The Highlands Bluebirds soccer team knocked off Cincinnati (Ohio) Indian Hill on Saturday.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team (2-0-1 overall) knocked off an Ohio defending state champion Saturday at Tower Park.

The Cincinnati Indian Hill Braves had won the last two Division II state championships. But the Bluebirds beat the Braves, 3-1.

Anna Podojil led the Braves to those two state championships. The 5-foot-5-inch forward won the 2018-19 Gatorade Player of the Year award for Ohio last year and is now playing at the University of Arkansas. Her sister Ellie Podojil, a midfielder, is a senior and has also committed to Arkansas.

"(Ellie Podojil) is the real deal," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "So we changed up our formation (Saturday). We had kind of an irregular formation. We took one of our outside wings and we turned it into a man-to-man (defense). We had two of our defenders switch off and we had one of our defenders stay with her the entire game. She did not get a lot of chances. That was one of the things we wanted to work on because in the future, we're going to face some teams that have that stellar player. Our defense did a good job of helping if the defender did get beat."
Sophomore Chloe Bramble scored the first goal for Highlands with around 35 minutes left in the first half. She also had an assist and leads the Bluebirds with two goals and two assists for six points on the season. The Bluebirds led 1-0 at halftime.

The second goal came from senior Maria Broering with 39 minutes left in the game. Sophomore sister Faith Broering scored with three minutes left in the game for the final score. Faith Broering and junior Greta Noble also had assists.

Highlands has yet to allow more than one goal in a game this year. Highlands had 14 shots with 11 on goal to eight shots for Indian Hill. Bluebirds junior goalkeeper Jasmine Rehberger had seven saves.

"I felt our defense held a very tight line and worked well together," said Parker Price, Highlands senior midfielder. "Our passing was extremely good. Our midfield held back a little to help the defense. Our offense was making fantastic runs and our balls were great over top."

Highlands plays host to Ryle (1-3) on Monday. Game time is 8 p.m.

Soccer, Boys:Highlands 5, Trinity 3:
Highlands (4-1) lost for the first time this season.

Senior Caymon Stevie, junior Max Farris and sophomore Cole Lorenzen had the goals for the Bluebirds. Junior Hank Cook had the assist. Farris has six goals and two assists on the season for a team-high 14 points.

Highlands takes on North Oldham on Tuesday. Game time is 7 p.m.

Golf, Boys:Highlands plays in Mason County Invitational:

The Bluebirds tied for seventh with Pikeville with 322 in the event at Laurel Oaks Golf Course. Lexington Sayre won it with 310.

Saturday, August 24, 2019

The Highlands Bluebirds saw two quarterbacks in action in the win at Scott on Friday.

Junior Jake Fahlbusch started the game and senior Collin Hollingsworth finished it. Fahlbusch completed 7-of-11 passes for 94 yards and a touchdown with Hollingsworth completing 12-of-22 for 137 yards, an interception and touchdown. Both are left-handed quarterbacks.

"I thought they both actually played pretty well," said Sam Umberg, Highlands Offensive Coordinator. "The big thing on film (Saturday) is each one is going to learn from the other. A lot of teams don't have the luxury of having two lefties. They can learn from each other as well as learn from their own reps."
Hollingsworth rushed for a touchdown in the third quarter on a quarterback sweep. That put Highlands up 35-13 with 1:47 left.

Highlands had not started a southpaw at quarterback since 2012 when Donovan McCoy started. McCoy gave the Bluebirds a dual threat running and passing the ball.

Series Against Scott:
Highlands moved to 31-0 all-time against Scott. This marked the first time the two teams met since 2010 when they were in the same Class 5A District 5.

Around District 5:
The district finished 4-0 on the first night of action. Covington Catholic won its 30th game in 31 tries with a convincing 37-0 win over Ryle at home.

Cooper and Boone County also posted victories to open the season. Cooper edged Dixie Heights, 7-0 and the Rebels beat Covington Holmes, 20-6.

Up Next:
Highlands plays Knoxville Catholic (1-0) in the Cumberland Falls Pigskin Classic on Saturday. Game time is 5:30 p.m. The Fighting Irish opened the season with a convincing 48-0 win over Chuckey-Doak out of Afton (Tennessee).

Cross Country:
The Highlands Cross Country teams ran in the Moeller Primetime Invitational at Christ's Church at Mason to open the season. Both teams ran in the varsity blue race.

The Highlands girls placed eighth out of 18 teams with 216 points. Highlands junior Maggie Schroeder led the way placing 13th with a time of 20 minutes, 20.5 seconds.

The Highlands boys placed 14th out of 17 teams. Junior Will Griffith led the Bluebirds finishing 45th in 17:53.3.

Highlands next runs in the Mason Invitational on Sept. 7 at 9 a.m. The race takes place at Corwin M. Nixon Pine Hills Lake Park in Mason (Ohio).

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands volleyball team huddles before the game against Beechwood on Tuesday.

They came out in a rhythm and kept up the intensity the entire way to open the season at home.

The Highlands Bluebirds volleyball team returns 10 players with varsity experience from last year's 25-11 team and it showed in a big way in a 3-0 (25-12, 25-11, 25-12) win over the Beechwood Lady Tigers. The Bluebirds made just 17 errors in the victory with 10 coming on hitting errors.

The lightning on the field came to full force as the arch-rivals met in the season-opener for the hosts at Tower Park.

But the lightning on the field forced the game to end early. That meant the Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team and the Notre Dame Pandas (1-0-1) had to settle for a 1-1 tie.

"It's really hard playing your rival the very first game of the year, but I think it's kind of a good thing," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "Leaving a big gap for if we do see them in the post-season, it's not, 'Oh, wait. We just saw them.' We have to adjust throughout the season. Things happen. We weren't worried about the score. Winning is always great. (But) it's making sure we're playing hard and we're out there trying to get a little more fit. We're a little slim on numbers. But we have faith in our girls. They all can play 80 minutes. Games like that will help us get to that."

Sunday, August 18, 2019

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Members of the Highlands Boys Soccer Coaching staff watch at the end of a recent practice. Highlands is 2-0 on the season after beating Louisville Ballard, 1-0 on Saturday.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team (2-0 overall) knocked off the Louisville Ballard Bruins, 1-0 in a tight non-region game Saturday.

Thursday, May 30, 2019

Highlands sophomore Peter Laskey was the lone qualifier for the state tournament this year. He lost in the first round Thursday to Campbell County junior Anderson McDowell, 6-1, 6-1. Laskey made the state tournament by making the 9th Region semifinals.

Wednesday, May 22, 2019

Highlands and Boone County had a game cancelled during the regular season. Highlands finished 14-3 in region play including 6-2 against teams in the region tournament.

The Bluebirds have won four straight region championships and went on to finish state runner-up in 2015 and 2018. The semifinals take place at UC Health Stadium on Monday at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. The championship game is Tuesday at 7 p.m.

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

The Highlands Bluebirds baseball team (23-9 overall) held a 5-3 lead going into the seventh inning at Highland Park on Monday.

But the Cooper Jaguars (23-7) scored seven runs in the top of the frame to record a 10-5 9th Region victory. The loss stopped the four-game Highlands winning streak and left the Bluebirds 11-3 in region play.

But their uniforms still say Covington Catholic on them. Therefore, the Highlands Bluebirds baseball team (22-8 overall) did not let the guard down pulling away late for a 10-1 9th Region victory at Highland Park over the Colonels (16-14). Highlands has won three straight to move to 11-2 in region play.

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

The Highlands Bluebirds baseball team (19-7 overall) came into the game Wednesday undefeated in 9th Region play at 7-0.

The Bluebirds had done well in recent games taking great approaches at the plate and manufacturing runs. But Dixie Heights sophomore pitcher Zachary Harris limited the Bluebirds to just four hits in 25 at-bats for a .160 batting average in a 2-1 Colonel win. Harris had 11 strikeout and no walks.

Sunday, April 28, 2019

The Highlands Bluebirds had to win a shoot-out to conclude the Reid Rizzo Classic at Highland Park on Sunday.

Highlands (18-6) beat the Upper Arlington Golden Bears, 21-16. The Bluebirds took third place in the classic originally hosted by Cincinnati La Salle. Saturday rains forced the postponement of the game for a day. Highlands is 2-3 against Ohio opponents.

Friday, April 26, 2019

The Highlands Bluebirds baseball team (16-5 overall) saw its seven-game winning streak come to an end in a 2-0 loss to the Cincinnati (Ohio) Moeller Crusaders at UC Medical Center Stadium in Florence on Thursday.

It may look like a pure run-ruling in favor of the Highlands Bluebirds baseball team (16-4 overall).

But after two innings, Highlands led just 8-4 before pulling away to beat the host Bishop Brossart Mustangs (12-10), 20-4 in four innings.

"Bishop Brossart kept fighting. (The Mustangs) put together some good at-bats," said Jeremy Baioni, Highlands Head Coach. "We left a couple balls up. We had a big inning in the third and really settled down on the mound. We made some really good defensive plays later in the game. They put pressure on us early on."

Wednesday, April 24, 2019

For the first time this season, the Highlands Bluebirds softball team (5-4 overall) moved above .500 on the season with a 6-0 win over the Loveland (Ohio) Tigers (3-14) from the East Cincinnati Conference.

Highlands has won four in a row with the first shutout of the season Tuesday. The Bluebirds moved to 2-1 against Ohio opponents.

The Highlands Bluebirds baseball team (15-4 overall) has dominated the 9th Region Tournament so much in recent years that the stat has flown under the radar.

"I didn't even know we were 12-0 in the series to be honest," said Ethan Kavanagh, Highlands junior shortstop. "We just come out and play hard every single day. (Newport Central Catholic) is just another opponent that we have to beat. It's a big game in the season. We come come out playing the game like we always do."
Highlands ran its winning streak to that many wins in a row over the Thoroughbreds (8-10) with a 7-1 win at Highland Park. The Bluebirds moved to 3-0 in 36th District play with their 39th straight win over district opponents and 7-0 in region play. NewCath was the last district team to beat Highlands, 3-1 in the region championship on May 31, 2012.

For the second straight day, the balls erupted off the bats of the Highlands Bluebirds softball team.

Highlands (3-4 overall) batted .476 (10-for-21) scoring eight runs in the first inning and run-ruling the 6-9 Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds, 13-3 at Winkler Field. It marked the first 36th District game for the Bluebirds this year.

"It's big for us. As I've mentioned, we're just starting to come around with the bats," said Rob Coffey, Highlands Head Coach. "To keep that rolling and keep that consistent is our message. The girls have really bought into putting the ball in play. They're reaping the benefits now. It makes the game fun, too."

When it ended, the scoreboard blinked 1 then 1 signaling 11 runs scored in that inning. That's all the Highlands Bluebirds baseball team (12-4 overall) needed to knock off the 5-10 Covington Holmes Bulldogs, 11-1 in a 9th Region game Monday at Highland Park in five innings. The Bluebirds moved to 5-0 in region play with the victory.

In a rematch of last year's state quarterfinals, the Highlands Bluebirds baseball team (10-4 overall) defeated the Paintsville Tigers (10-6) by a 7-2 score at Campbell County on Friday in the Doc Morris Invitational.

Monday, April 8, 2019

The Highlands Bluebirds baseball team faced three out-of-state teams in the Super PREP event in Louisville on Friday and Saturday.

Highlands (8-3 overall) lost 10-3 to Jeffersonville (Indiana) on Friday. But the Bluebirds came back to beat Lincoln-Way Central (New Lenox, Illinois), 8-1 and Glenbrook South (Glenview, Illinois) by a 10-5 score on Saturday. The Bluebirds are 3-2 against non-Kentucky opponents.

Wednesday, March 27, 2019

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands softball Head Coach Rob Coffey gives instructions at a recent practice. The Bluebirds opened the season Tuesday with a win.

The Highlands Bluebirds softball team opened the season with a convincing four-inning 16-1 win over the Bishop Brossart Lady Mustangs (1-2) at Winkler Field.

"They came out a little nervous. We came out and made a couple errors on defense in the first inning," said Rob Coffey, Highlands Head Coach. "But once we settled down, defense was super solid. Pitching was good. We really, really attacked in the box hitting-wise. We were really focused. Our base hits were clean. We've been working on that all winter being super aggressive early in the count so we can hit good pitches."

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Rainy weather forced the cancellations of several Highlands sporting events Monday. Highlands baseball (3-1) was to play host to Boone County and the softball team scheduled its season opener against Newport on the road.

The Highlands boys tennis team had a home match against Simon Kenton cancelled.

Thursday, March 21, 2019

PHOTO: Kris Laskey. Highlands senior Jacob Schuh makes a move in the tennis match against Conner on Wednesday. Highlands won 5-0 to move to 2-0.

The Highlands Bluebirds baseball team held on for an 8-7 win over the Conner Cougars (1-2) in the season-opener Wednesday at Highland Park.

"It's always good to get a win. It's obviously early. We played like it's early," said Jeremy Baioni, Highlands Head Coach. "We need to clean some things up especially defensively and need to make sure we have each others' back. I thought we had pretty good approaches offensively."

Highlands senior Nolan Turner pitched the final three innings to pick up the win. The Bluebirds ended the game with a double play.

That was the case in this one even though the Highlands Bluebirds girls basketball team (25-4 overall) led from the first basket just 14 seconds in until the very end in a 48-38 non-region victory over the Simon Kenton Lady Pioneers (17-10). Highlands reached 25 victories in a season for the first time since going 30-4 during the 2014-15 season.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls basketball team originally had a game scheduled Friday at Conner.

But Conner had to make up a 33rd District game against Ryle. But Highlands (24-4 overall) found a rematch against the Scott Lady Eagles instead winning it by a 70-51 score in Taylor Mill on Saturday for a 10th straight win equaling last year's win total.

Strong defensive efforts have been helping the Highlands Bluebirds boys basketball team (17-10 overall) down the stretch.

Another one in Erlanger on Friday led to an impressive 55-34 9th Region win over the Lloyd Memorial Juggernauts (15-7). Highlands has won seven of its last eight games and is 11-2 in region play. Lloyd Memorial has lost three straight and is 8-4 in region play.

"You like for your seniors to step up and raise their level of practice and focus," said Kevin Listerman, Highlands Head Coach. "I felt like we had a couple good days of practice leading into (Friday). At this point of time, you are who you are as a team. You try to fine-tune things. The biggest thing is having guys understand their roles and excel in the things that you ask them to do. I felt especially defensively, we did that."